Veteran singer Desmond de Silva passed away at the age of 77 in Melbourne, Australia yesterday.
He was often regarded as the "King of Baila". He was born in Matara, Southern Sri Lanka.
"Des", as he was known to his fans, launched his career in popular music in Colombo in 1963. He was the lead vocalist of the Fire-Flies. His music was featured widely on Radio Ceylon and subsequently the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation, the oldest radio station in South Asia.
In 1976 he decided to form his own band, "Desmond and the Clan", which performed in various countries in Southeast Asia, including the Maldives. Desmond de Silva represented Sri Lanka at the 5th Olympiad of Songs in Athens, Greece in 1979 and at the Yamaha Festival of Song in Tokyo, Japan.
He has celebrated 40 years in show business, selling millions of CDs around the world. De Silva was known for his popular renditions of Sri Lankan 'baila' music, which was a style whose origins are in Portuguese and Spanish music. He has had a string of baila hits including: 'Polkatu Hande,' ' Yaman Bando (Wally Bastiansz),' 'Chuda Manike,' 'Mamma No,' 'Miss Sri Lanka,' 'Hai Hui baby Achchi (Wally Bastiansz),' 'Rajasangabo' 'Komali Pane,' as well as popular recordings of anonymous baila songs. He was also known for a whole range of 'Party Time' non-stop baila music.
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